What Children Need from Their Parents’ Employers Ellen Bravo Multi-State Working Families Consortium Presentation for BUILD Conference November 16, 2006

Being a Good Family Member Can Cost You Your Job  Not enough time to care: children suffer  Affects many, but especially low-wage

Time to Care  More than balance: basics  More than stress: crisis  Race as well as class  Consequences for kids  Affects women most, but low-wage men, too.

Background: 1978  Pregnancy Discrimination Act:  can’t fire women for being pregnant – but you don’t have to hold their jobs.  pregnancy like other temporary disabilities – but most women work for firms with no short-term disability plans.

Problems with FMLA Nearly half the private sector workforce isn’t covered Doesn’t cover siblings, same-sex partners Doesn’t cover routine illness It’s unpaid.

Background: Sick Days  Half the workforce – and ¾ of low-wage workers - have no paid sick days.  Many who do can’t use them to care for sick family members.

Background: 1996  “Welfare as we know it” is ended -- by those who’ve never known it.  What low-wage women used for family leave  TANF is modeled on low- wage jobs – which forced many onto welfare.  Cut rolls, not poverty

Attitudes, Assumptions  ‘Aha’ moments in Across the Boundaries study of low-wage workers:  “Do you have any idea what my life is like?”

Institutional Policies and Practices Lack of Policies “ If the kids are sick, there’s no place for them to go. The child care center called and said I had to get my daughter. I was fired.” -DeNice, rural county outside Eau Claire, WI

Problem Policies Cont’d Lack of Flexibility :  Not allowed to make up time  Rigid use of personal days At the fringes:  Even “best list” companies fall short  Policies for managers only (e.g., lactation)  Depends on manager discretion

Problem Practices Cont’d  “Objective” requirements affecting women differently Example: no tolerance for lateness Based on stereotyped view of “ideal worker” as someone with car, phone, back-up

Reality for Low-Wage Workers “ I had 4 jobs - I drove a school bus, delivered newspapers, worked with the Girl Scouts, and sold Tupperware. None of the jobs had benefits. I had to make hard choices about supporting my kids instead of spending time with them. When my toddler was sick, I took her with me on the bus.” - Julia, Milwaukee

Affects Men As Well  Low-wage men, especially men of color, have least flexible jobs  Many more would be good fathers if not punished at work

Impact on Parents – and Kids  Work can’t pay if it doesn’t last – and it can’t last if it jeopardizes kids.  Cost of starting over.

Impact on Children  Lack of bonding time for infants  Kids go to day care sick.  Kids send themselves to school sick.  Health and learning problems become disabilities.

What’s at Stake for Low-Wage Workers  High cost of being poor  Ability to keep a job, build assets  Well-being of children and families – job churning contributes to highest child poverty rate in industrialized world

Guarantee for All  Some smart employers will do this on their own.  Not all – like asking 2-year-olds to determine when they need a time out.

Solutions: Public Policy Changes  Family Flexibility  Make leave more accessible  Make leave more affordable  Guarantee paid sick days  Keep consideration for chronic conditions  Expand definition of family

Multi-State Working Families Consortium  Eight state coalitions: California, Georgia, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Washington and Wisconsin  Collaborating for more effective action, raise public awareness.

Where We Are Now: Opportunities  Reframe the Debate  Values: caring, responsibility, opportunity  Who really values families  Put kids in the center rather than the fringes.

Making Progress in the States  Winning forms of paid leave  expanding TDI to include family leave:  California  New Jersey  New York  creating new form of social insurance:  Washington  Massachusetts

Making Progress in the States  Making progress on guaranteeing protection:  Sick days:  San Francisco, Madison  Massachusetts  All of us  Family Care:  Maine  FMLA for school/day care activities:  Georgia  Wisconsin

Increased Collaboration  Connecting the dots: Labor. Women. Children’s groups. Progressive employers. Family physicians. Faith-based. Disabilities groups. Chronic disease. Alzheimers Associations. AIDS groups. Mental health organizations. PTAs. Principals. School boards. Social workers. Cities/counties groups. Citizen Action. Welfare rights/anti- poverty groups. Aging groups. Foster children. Work- family researchers. Legal groups. Parents of adult disabled. Adoption groups. Immigrant advocates. Groups in communities of color. Human Rights groups. Non-profit associations. Insurers. Women’s business associations. AAUW. YWCA. Planned Parenthood. MomsRising

 Lay the groundwork for policy change.  Redefining issues – linking what happens to kids, families with what happens to parents at work. New Opportunities